Cybersecurity

Social Engineering

/ˈsəʊʃəl ˌendʒɪˈnɪərɪŋ/

Definition

Manipulating people into divulging information or performing actions that compromise security.

Example in context

"The attacker called the helpdesk pretending to be IT support and got a password reset — social engineering, not hacking."

Practice this term

Master Social Engineering in context by working through exercises in the Cybersecurity module. You'll see the term used in real engineering scenarios with multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and matching drills.